Rethinking plastic as a habitat modifier and a transport vector for organisms in aquatic environments

<p dir="ltr"><b>Scientific Significance Statement</b>: Plastic pollution is affecting aquatic and marine ecosystems. However, while increasing evidence highlights potential toxicological effects, broader ecosystem-level impacts remain largely overlooked. Recent findings suggest that plastic can undermine ecosystem functioning by altering fundamental fluxes of energy and matter at key interfaces within aquatic ecosystems. This view warrants urgent investigation, as rising plastic concentrations in aquatic ecosystems may disrupt their fundamental functioning, and current environmental concentrations in heavily polluted environments may already be altering ecosystem structure. <p dir="ltr"><br>